CPW looking to kill off our mature bucks and it shows...

For the last several year the quality and quantity of larger bucks in NW Colorado has been on a slide. I am mostly familiar with NW section so my comments are on this area. Not sure if other areas are seeing the same trends. Over the last several years the CPW has incrementally increased buck license allocations in the NW. They have done this step by step. As a result many can see a significant decrease in the number of mature bucks and the quality of mature bucks.

Looking at the proposed license allocations in Colorado highlights what we knew was coming. CPW has decided that the best way to fight CWD is by killing off mature bucks. The end result in this year allocation proposals means a lot of changes for draw odds etc. A couple themes you can see in the NW units...

1. An over all increase in buck tags

2. A shift of many licenses from 2nd season to 3rd season (they want to make mature bucks easier to kill)

3. Many 4th season (Quality Hunts) saw significant increases. Some of the 4th hunts are seeing an increase of over 300%.

4. With allocations shifting, in some cases the 3rd season tags may get easier to draw than 2nd season. Points will be funky this year for sure.

5. If you applied for a 4th season tag expecting to be in the field with only a dozen other hunters, you will now be competing with 60-70 other hunters in some units.

Many here have questioned the CPWs "Science" that is driving this issue. There are many unanswered questions with the increase in CWD rates in the NW. There are even more questions as to why killing mature bucks will somehow result in lower infection rates.

Regardless, it is important that you look at the proposed allocations, adjust your expectations accordingly. Luckily the 4th season tag I applied for only went from 20 tags to 25, however there are many that are offering 40-60 even up to 70.

In the next few years we will have a bunch of people killing 2-3 year old bucks and the CWD infections will drop. But who wants to kill 2 and 3 year old deer?

https://cpw.state.co.us/Documents/C...vcGIsYhvBg-BTFQvv7ShwKmJ5WRTcydSP8WoaVq1IVSXw

LAST EDITED ON Apr-30-19 AT 11:16AM (MST)[p]This is the second year of 4th season buck tag increases, and the latest shot in the dark to stop the spread of CWD. It will work as well as the other steps. In a few years after it shows no affect states back east will start to do it. Natural selection will be the only thing that defeats CWD in the end. Until then all I can do is SMH.



#livelikezac

Wow. I hunted unit 70 4th 2 years ago and it was not as good as it has been in the past. And they are jumping from 45 tags to 75?!?!?

Seems to me they are trying to make up some lost revenue from reducing elk tags ( primarily cow tags). Has to be about money because they sure aren't going for quality

txhunter58

venor, ergo sum (I hunt, therefore I am)

I might applied differently.

I can understand more antlerless tags for herd objectives, but not so many buck tags.

There was some pretty bad winter kills in recent years in that part of the world. It takes a long time to build the age class back up, and I agree that CPW doesn't help by giving out as many tags as feasible for the population, but on the other hand they are managing for opportunity if the population can sustain it.

>There was some pretty bad winter
>kills in recent years in
>that part of the world.
> It takes a long
>time to build the age
>class back up, and I
>agree that CPW doesn't help
>by giving out as many
>tags as feasible for the
>population, but on the other
>hand they are managing for
>opportunity if the population can
>sustain it.

That 'Managing for Opportunity' Sshhiitt is gettin Old,Real F'N Old!









I know so many people in so many places
They make allot of money but they got sad faces

It Ain't Easy being Me!

>>There was some pretty bad winter
>>kills in recent years in
>>that part of the world.
>> It takes a long
>>time to build the age
>>class back up, and I
>>agree that CPW doesn't help
>>by giving out as many
>>tags as feasible for the
>>population, but on the other
>>hand they are managing for
>>opportunity if the population can
>>sustain it.
>
>That 'Managing for Opportunity' Sshhiitt is
>gettin Old,Real F'N Old!
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>I know so many people in
>so many places
>They make allot of money but
>they got sad faces
>
>It Ain't Easy being Me!

That isn't what they're doing here. This is their latest scheme to stem the tide of CWD. Nothing more, nothing less.


#livelikezac

Guess they didn't learn anything from the great northern Colorado deer slaughter of the early 2000s. It's a damn shame.

I know it is a touchy subject, but in my opinion, long range shooting has had a impact of quality mature bucks. I personally know multiple guys who never had the ability to properly hunt the smart mature bucks and as a result never killed one. Fast forward 5+ years with the increased popularity and affordability of long range guns and these guys are now killing big bucks from a canyon over instead of having to use knowledge, skill, and ability to harvest said buck.

I know there are more reasons than this but one can not deny this plays are part as well.

Stay safe and shoot straight!!

As many of you have pointed out, this is about CWD. The problem is they could not explain why other units with High Buck Doe ratios and older class bucks are seeing very low infection rates. This might decrease the rate of CWD, but at what cost? I can say this, after this year, should I draw, I am no longer interested in Colorado Deer Hunts. If you get an early snow with this late season shift of tags, the age structure will be crushed. Mature deer which are already extremely hard to find will be non existent.

It is sad...

What page would I find the Gunnison basin deer hunts?
I found some but they were red numbers with lines through them what does that mean?

> What page would I find
>the Gunnison basin deer hunts?
>
>I found some but they were
>red numbers with lines through
>them what does that mean?
>
The red number represents a change from last year. The red number with a line is the allocation last year, the other red number next to it is the new allocation. I saw some that were dropped in 2nd but added to 3rd etc.

Looks like the hunts on the eastern plains will get even more valuable. I used to hunt the public areas (USFS,BLM) , but am heading east this year and that might be my future focus.

>Looks like the hunts on the
>eastern plains will get even
>more valuable. I used
>to hunt the public areas
>(USFS,BLM) , but am heading
>east this year and that
>might be my future focus.
>

I am hoping that my 4th season hunt falls through and in 2 years I can go east in stead. Not happy about the change of events...

This has nothing to do with CWD, it's called opportunity hunting, wake up. It's happening in Idaho and Montana too. The flat brimmers and new hunters do not want to wait in line or even wait out 2 to three years to get a tag. All the big publications saying hunting is dying, we are loosing Sportsman. We have a lot more hunters now than we had 10 years ago. Colorado, Wyoming and Arizona have a big problem with preference points and they know it . The Idaho game and fish is doing the same thing ( opportunity hunting). It's the new norm, everyone should be entitled to hunt, just ask the meat eater. Idaho has it figured out with Colorado, atfer the Colorado draw everyone who was unsuccessful can immediately put in for Idaho on the last day. You guys should all come to Idaho to hunt the big Fork Horn.